1959: Early vaccinations get shot in the arm

In recent years, early childhood vaccinations have become controversial. In the 1950s, however, with threats like measles and polio more prevalent, parents accepted any and all help battling infectious diseases.

The Times-Picayune archive

On July 8, 1959, Nelson Joseph Ordoyne Jr. of Marrero managed an ‘it didn’t even hurt’ grin as he received a shot from nurse Jean Nash at the Jefferson Parish health clinic in Gretna.

Dr. L.R.B. Centanni, director of the Jefferson Parish public health unit at the time, encouraged parents to start vaccination routines four years before children entered school. He thought giving children a lot of injections as school started added ‘extra trauma’ as they were adjusting to the new environment.

He encouraged parents to bring children to any of the parish’s 14 clinics rather than waiting for the inoculations to be administered at school. Centanni believed ‘the real answer to assuring the child’s health lies in the education of the parents and the teachers.’